INTERVIEW ‘‘
New technologies need to be as inclusive and representative as possible... but when new technologies come along, they can feel very baffling to certain demographic age groups. – Fiona Morris
Rob Mackinlay is a journalist for Information Professional.
Saving tech from the bros
What is the role of public libraries in developing technology? Fiona Morris, Chief Executive and Creative Director of The Space and Dave Lloyd, Service Development Manager, Coventry Libraries, explain how the Digital Space in Libraries programme aims to transform the way communities interact with digital creativity.
THE idea that technology is best understood by its creators is epitomised by a quote attrib- uted to car maker Henry Ford: “If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses.”
But including people in the development process not only helps keep technology relevant but explores its potential – Thomas Edison, for example, only saw his sound recording device as a dictation tool for office workers, not something that would transform the entertainment industry.
What role the public should have in developing how technology is used and improved is a key aspect of the recently launched Digital Spaces in Libraries Programme (
https://tinyurl.com/IPDigiSpace) which uses virtual reality and training to help communities understand how to interact with and influence technology.
The project activities range from Virtual Reality (VR) experiences and immersive filmmaking master classes to funding opportunities for creating new digital content.
Nine library services are taking part: Bradford, Cambridgeshire, Coventry, Leeds, Manchester, Newham, Nottinghamshire (Inspire), Somerset, and Sunderland.
“New technologies need to be as inclusive and representative as possible,” says, Fiona Morris, Chief Executive of The Space – which is coordinating the programme, an expanded version of Digital Spaces which ran in Coventry in 2021. “But when new technologies come along, they can feel very baffling to certain demographic age groups. “Public libraries are the one public space where people do not feel a barrier,” she said, adding: “Some people may not access any other publicly funded cul
Spring 2025 Photo © Hayley Salter
tural space. So, public libraries are brilliant spaces to bring those technologies in and let communities have access to them. Without this we’re getting a fragment of audience feedback on the use of new technologies.”
Why Virtual Reality?
One aspect of Digital Spaces is the VR tour. To some VR is a potentially worldchanging technology, to others an interesting gimmick. For the former, it has been a harder nut to crack than expected in terms of widespread public use. Most recently Mark Zuckerburg and Meta have spent billions of dollars trying to harness it, with little success.
But the Digital Spaces programme should work INFORMATION PROFESSIONAL 31
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